![]() ![]() With a flash drive or portable hard drive, users can play back digital media files including MP4, MKV, AAC, MP3, JPEG, and PNG files, though an application is required for this functionality to work. The Roku 3 also allows users to stream their own content. Adding private channels like Twonky to beam YouTube content from your Android or iOS device to the Roku 3 seems to work fine. ![]() There are a couple workarounds to this, however. The only major service that Roku doesn't offer is an official YouTube channel, apparently a years-old issue that does not yet have a resolution. If you’re especially curious or new to Roku, the company offers a complete listing of its available channels online. There’s programming for children via the Disney app, and sports fans can watch MLB.TV and purchase a premium subscription to watch their favorite teams play. ![]() Those interested in cooking can tune in to All Recipes and Recipe.TV, and those looking for educational content can watch TEDTalks and NASA TV. It also offers the live TV application from Time Warner Cable. Some of the major players include Netflix, Hulu Plus, HBO Go, Amazon Instant Video, Amazon Cloud Player, Spotify, and Pandora. Any channel you download or subscribe to is linked to your Roku account so that it's available when you move devices. Like a television, Roku offers channels that are essentially apps that link to a streaming URL. Roku has managed to become a hub for some of the most widely used streaming services-about 750 and counting. Roku features a variety of channels available for download. It’s only a shame that there's no voice control like on the Xbox via the Kinect, because the keyboard input via the remote is a bit slow. Say you’re aching to watch the BBC’s Sherlock: simply type the name into the search option on the Home page and Roku will retrieve the different services that are streaming it-a helpful option for users who might have subscriptions to Netflix, Hulu Plus, and even Amazon Instant Video but aren't sure which service has the most episodes to offer. The Roku 3 also allows users to search for content across different services. Still, some of the "channels" haven’t evolved along with Roku and are still sporting dated interfaces. Overall, the new interface is more user friendly than older versions of the Roku, as menus are easier to navigate through. Users can see more channels at a glance and change the background theme of the interface, and there is a nice transition effect while perusing through menus. ![]() The Roku’s interface underwent a major overhaul, and it no longer features the static, flip-through icon carousel of older iterations. The Roku 3's new interface is smooth and fluid, not to mention easy to use. It also feels a bit like a paperweight, but that helps keep the puck from sliding around in your entertainment center. At 3.5 × 3.5 × 1 inches, it’s a bit smaller than the second- and third-generation Apple TV and Western Digital's Play set-top box. It features an ARM-based processor and other components all wrapped inside a shiny, hockey-puck shaped chassis. The Roku 3, available now for $99.99, calls itself the “most powerful, responsive streaming box” that Roku has ever built. Regardless, the Roku has been successful in its model, and the Roku 3 continues in the company's tradition of delivering an affordable, feature-filled streaming device. Roku is especially made for those who want to stream a variety of content from third-parties, while the other two act more as a mediator for users to play content they already own while still having access to some of the more widely used third parties. To be fair, Roku, Apple, and Western Digital all offer slightly different things. It's the content partnerships that have made the devices so successful-consumers have a great deal of choice when it comes to streaming, something that the Apple TV and even the WDTV Play are still catching up on. Roku is no stranger to set-top boxes-we’d even go so far as to say that the company has managed to set the standard for what these little streaming devices should offer. ![]()
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